Night had already fallen upon the Heng Ming Sect.
Darkness blanketed the mountain peaks.
Lanterns illuminated the stone pathways connecting the various halls and residences.
The mountain appeared peaceful.
Yet beneath that calm exterior, unease was spreading rapidly.
Because inside Elder Luo's residence—
Panic had already begun.
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The black token remained on the desk.
Silent.
Motionless.
Yet its presence felt heavier than a mountain.
Elder Luo stared at it.
His face had long since lost all color.
The token should not exist.
Not here.
Not now.
Not after so many years.
His hands trembled slightly.
A reaction he immediately suppressed.
The guards must not see.
Nobody must see.
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"Seal the residence."
His voice was sharp.
Immediate.
The guards froze.
"Search everything."
Every corner.
Every room."
"No one enters."
"No one leaves."
The guards immediately obeyed.
Within minutes, the entire residence became a fortress.
Cultivators searched every roof.
Every corridor.
Every hidden space.
Nothing was overlooked.
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Hours passed.
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Nothing was found.
No intruder.
No traces.
No clues.
Nothing.
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That only made the situation worse.
Much worse.
Because it meant someone had entered the residence without being seen.
Placed the token.
Then vanished.
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Elder Luo understood exactly what that meant.
And that frightened him more than he cared to admit.
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Before dawn arrived, emergency summons were already being sent throughout the sect.
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The elders gathered.
One by one.
Their expressions darkened as Elder Luo recounted everything.
The open window.
The missing intruder.
The appearance of the token.
The impossible circumstances surrounding it.
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Silence followed.
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The atmosphere inside the council chamber became heavy.
Oppressive.
No one spoke for several moments.
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Finally—
"Impossible."
One elder shook his head.
"The residence was guarded."
"Nobody could have entered."
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"Yet someone did."
Another elder replied.
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Arguments quickly followed.
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"The assassins are provoking us."
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"No."
"They're sending a warning."
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"What warning?"
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"That they can reach us whenever they wish."
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The room gradually descended into chaos.
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Xiaoyu sat quietly at the head of the chamber.
Listening.
Observing.
Trying very hard not to panic.
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Every elder occasionally looked toward her.
Waiting.
Expecting.
Trusting.
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The feeling made her uncomfortable.
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Very uncomfortable.
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Because she knew something none of them did.
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She wasn't Yuchen.
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Yet every person in this room believed she was the leader who would protect them.
The leader who would solve this crisis.
The leader who possessed answers.
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Meanwhile—
She barely understood what was happening herself.
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The pressure settled heavily upon her shoulders.
---
For the first time, Xiaoyu truly understood what Yuchen's position meant.
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Sect Master.
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It wasn't authority.
It wasn't status.
It was responsibility.
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And at this moment, that responsibility felt crushing.
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The discussions continued.
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Eventually one conclusion became clear.
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Security would be doubled.
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Additional patrols would be deployed.
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Every elder would receive protection.
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Every suspicious movement would be investigated.
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Nobody objected.
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Not after what had happened.
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The meeting finally ended several hours later.
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The elders departed in small groups.
Quiet conversations followed them into the hallways.
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Only a handful remained behind.
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Among them—
Li Jianhong.
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The young man stood silently.
Waiting.
Patiently.
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Only when the final elder left did he move.
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"Elder Luo."
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The elder turned.
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Li Jianhong bowed respectfully.
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"I have a question."
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Elder Luo nodded.
"Speak."
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Li Jianhong hesitated.
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Then—
"The token."
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The elder's expression instantly changed.
Only for a moment.
A brief moment.
Yet Li noticed.
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"What does it mean?"
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Silence.
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The council chamber suddenly felt much colder.
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Elder Luo stared at him.
His eyes unreadable.
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Finally—
"I don't know."
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The answer came too quickly.
Too smoothly.
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Li Jianhong's gaze narrowed slightly.
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He wasn't convinced.
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Neither was Elder Luo.
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Because both men knew the answer was a lie.
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Unfortunately—
Neither spoke further.
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Li Jianhong eventually bowed.
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Then left.
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Yet as he walked away, one thought remained firmly planted inside his mind.
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Elder Luo knew something.
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Something important.
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Something connected to his father's death.
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And he intended to uncover it.
No matter how long it took.
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Outside the council hall, Xiaoyu watched the exchange from a distance.
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She noticed the hesitation.
The tension.
The unanswered question.
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The same conclusion slowly formed inside her mind.
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Elder Luo was hiding something.
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The question was—
Why?
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Night deepened.
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The mountain gradually fell silent.
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Patrols marched through the pathways.
Lanterns burned throughout the sect.
Guards remained stationed at every important location.
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Nobody intended to lower their vigilance.
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Not tonight.
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Unfortunately—
The enemy had other plans.
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Near midnight—
A bell suddenly rang.
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Once.
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Twice.
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Three times.
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The sound shattered the silence of the mountain.
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Alarm bells.
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Xiaoyu immediately sat upright inside her room.
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Outside, hurried footsteps echoed throughout the residence.
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"Young Master!"
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Shen Wei's voice arrived moments later.
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"We have a situation."
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The two quickly left.
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Disciples and guards were already rushing through the pathways.
Panic spread throughout the mountain.
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Nobody knew what had happened.
Only where it had happened.
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Elder Luo's residence.
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Xiaoyu's heart sank.
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The moment she arrived, she knew something was wrong.
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The guards stationed outside appeared terrified.
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No signs of battle existed.
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No damaged walls.
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No destroyed gates.
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No blood.
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Nothing.
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Yet everyone looked afraid.
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Very afraid.
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The residence doors slowly opened.
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Several elders had already arrived.
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Nobody spoke.
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Nobody moved.
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Xiaoyu stepped inside.
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The study looked exactly as it had before.
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Orderly.
Clean.
Untouched.
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Then she saw him.
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Elder Luo sat behind his desk.
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Motionless.
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Silent.
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Dead.
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His eyes remained open.
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Frozen forever.
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A look of pure terror remained upon his face.
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As though he had seen something impossible moments before his death.
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The room became deathly quiet.
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No wounds.
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No blood.
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No signs of struggle.
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Nothing.
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It was as though death itself had simply reached into the room and taken him away.
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Then Xiaoyu noticed something resting upon the desk.
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A familiar object.
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A black token.
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The same black token.
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Placed directly before Elder Luo's corpse.
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Like a signature.
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Like a message.
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Like a warning.
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And suddenly—
For the first time since the assassins attacked the coronation ceremony—
Xiaoyu felt genuine fear.
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Because whoever stood behind all of this had just killed one of the most powerful elders in the Heng Ming Sect.
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Inside the most heavily guarded residence on the mountain.
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Without leaving a single trace.
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And they were still out there.
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Watching.
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Waiting.
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Smiling.